Never judging books by their cover

Grace hasn’t been the same since the death of her best friend Charlie. She is haunted by Charlie’s words the last time she saw her, and in a bid for answers, opens an old memory box of Charlie’s. It soon becomes clear that there was a lot she didn’t know about her best friend. When Grace starts a campaign to find Charlie’s father, Anna, a girl claiming to be Charlie’s sister steps forward. For Grace, finding Anna is like finding a new family and soon Anna has made herself very comfortable in Grace and boyfriend Dan’s home. But something isn’t right. Things disappear, Dan’s acting strangely and Grace is sure that someone is following her. Is it all in Grace’s mind? Or as she gets closer to discovering the truth about both Charlie and Anna, is Grace in terrible danger? There was nothing she could have done to save Charlie . . . Or was there?

I started reading ‘The Sister’ one evening and was unable to put the book down as I was completely captivated by the story.

In this book, we meet Grace, a young woman who hasn’t quite gotten over the sudden death of her childhood friend Charlie and why she suddenly disappeared one day leaving many unanswered questions behind.

Charlie had quite a troubled childhood, her mother was an alcoholic and she never knew her father and this seemed to have a real impact on Charlie’s life, she would love to find her father but has never delved into it for the fear of upsetting her mother.

When Charlie dies and Grace opens the memory box that they created when they were 15, Grace finds a strange letter from Charlie and decides to fulfil her dead friends’ last wish and look for her father.

So when Anna responds to the advertisement, claiming to be the daughter of Charlie’s father, Grace immediately warms to the young woman and takes her under her wing, when Anna is going through difficulties. Anna becomes a replacement for Charlie and both Grace and Anna become firm friends. But Grace’s boyfriend Dan can’t warm to Anna, he wants her away from the couple and this regularly causes troubles particularly when things begin to happen to Grace and he points the finger of blame at Anna.

The story alternates from past to present tense, about the first meeting of Charlie and Grace and how they became firm friends to the moment of Charlie’s sudden death.

Grace is an interesting character, she’s comfortable in her relationship but knows that the relationship is far from perfect. She misses her best friend, the only person that knew the hidden truth behind her own troubled childhood. She doesn’t judge her and sticks up for her, when other girls pick on her.

I really enjoyed this story, it was an atmospheric and suspenseful story from the very beginning. With a clever plot and an interesting mix of characters, ‘The Sister’ is a wonderfully twisted story, that will have the reader guessing throughout.

You can buy The Sister from Amazon and is available to buy from good bookshops.

Queen of Christmas, Carole Matthews is back with a festive book to look forward to curling up and reading called ‘Christmas Cakes And Mistletoe Nights.

What the back cover says:

Fay and Danny are madly in love and it’s all Fay’s ever dreamed of. But she left everything – including the delightful cake shop she used to run – to be with Danny on his cosy canal boat The Dreamcatcher. And as she soon finds out, making delicious cakes on the water isn’t always smooth sailing!

Then Fay gets a call from her friends, a call that sends her back to her friends and the Cake Shop in the Garden. It will be hard being away from Danny but their relationship is strong enough to survive . . . isn’t it?

Fay soon falls happily back in love with her passion for baking – especially now she’s on dry land again! – and starts to wonder if she ever should have left. With Christmas around the corner, Fay is determined that her friends will have a very merry time, but does that mean even more time away from Danny?

Indulge in this wonderful, cake-filled novel of romance and friendship.

I’m delighted to be on the book tour to celebrate the release of Ali McNamara’s new book ‘The Summer Of Serendipity’ and I’m giving away a copy of the book to one lovely person.

What the back cover says

One summer, property seeker, Serendipity Parker finds herself on the beautiful west coast of Ireland, hunting for a home for a wealthy Irish client. But when she finds the perfect house in the small town of Ballykiltara, there’s a problem; nobody seems to know who owns it.

‘The Welcome House’ is a local legend. Its front door is always open for those in need of shelter, and there’s always a plentiful supply of food in the cupboards for the hungry or poor.

While Ren desperately tries to find the owner to see if she can negotiate a sale, she begins to delve deeper into the history and legends that surround the old house and the town. But for a woman who has always been focussed on her work, she’s remarkably distracted by Finn, the attractive manager of the local hotel.
But will she ever discover the real truth behind the mysterious ‘Welcome House’? Or will the house cast its magical spell over Ren and help her to find true happiness?

To be in with a chance of winning the book, just answer the following question by leaving your answer in the comment box below by Monday 31st July.

‘Catch Me If You Cannes’ is latest book by Lisa Dickenson and is also the full novel of ebook series from a few years ago.

Jess has decided it’s time to get out of her comfort zone and live a little. So when her best friend Bryony, a journalist on a gossip magazine, is sent to cover the Cannes Film Festival, Jess decides to seize the day and go along for the ride. Two weeks of sun, glamour and exclusive entry into celeb-filled parties is just the kind of adventure Jess needs.

Reality soon bites though when Jess and Bryony find they’re staying in a dingy hotel far away from all the action and Bryony’s expenses budget barely covers a glass of local wine. Undeterred, the two women are determined to live like the elite and enjoy one fancy night out to begin their holiday. So what if they have to tell a few white lies along the way? It’s just this once. No harm done . . . right?

Set against the backdrop of the exotic and glamorous Cannes, the story is about Jess and her best friend Bryony who both set off the Cannes Film Festival. Bryony is a journalist and hopes for a big reveal, whilst Jess goes along for a change of scenery. To fit in with some of worlds most elite and famous, the two women have to tell a few lies along the way, to make sure that people believe that they are rich and famous and worthy of their presence at the luxurious event.

I read this series a couple of years ago and I really enjoyed it. The book is filled with witty and funny characters that really made for entertaining reading.

The story is seen solely through the narrative of Jess and this perspective is enjoyable. Jess is a lovely lady with a sharp sense of humour, when she catches the eye of handsome Leo, a boatman who sails around Cannes, they embark on a relationship that makes for poignant and fun reading.

The story is riddled with fun and drama that had me giggling throughout, filled with handsome men and disastrous scenarios, ‘Catch Me If You Cannes’ is a fresh and fabulous story that is the perfect escapism read.

If you’re a fan of Jenny Colgan’s, then you’re in a for treat as she’s back with a second book in 2017 called ‘Spandex And The City’.

What the back cover says

LOCAL GIRL SWEPT OFF HER FEET

Mild-mannered publicist Holly Phillips is unlucky in love. She’s embarrassed beyond belief when the handsome stranger she meets in a bar turns out to be ‘Ultimate Man’ – a superpowered hero whose rescue attempt finds her hoisted over his shoulder and flashing her knickers in the newspaper the next day.

But when Holly’s fifteen minutes of fame make her a target for something villainous, she only has one place to turn – and finds the man behind the mask holds a lot more charm than his crime-fighting alter-ego.

Can Holly find love, or is superdating just as complicated as the regular kind?